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"Dude, how was your Valentine's Day?"
"You know... It was the usual depressing shitshow that comes with being single on Valentine's Day."
"I thought you said you were going to a bar or something?"
"I did. I went to that college bar that all the freshman chicks go to. I brought a shoebox full of puppies with me."
"Puppies?"
"Yeah. Chicks love puppies. Puppies are the Lemon Gin of the animal kingdom."
"So what happened?"
"I got swarmed man. It was great. This one girl was all over me."
"What was her name?"
"I dunno. Sandra or Dawnette or something."
"Did you hook up?"
"Almost."
"What do you mean 'almost'?"
"Well, it was all aces at first. She was gaga for those puppies. It was pretty much a slam dunk, but then I botched it."
"How?"
"I said, 'If you like these puppies you'll LOVE my bed. My sheets are made of puppies'."
"And?"
"Face slapped. Puppies confiscated. Ass kicked to curb."
"Shitty."
"I know. She must have been vegan or something."
"So... where did you get the puppies in the first place?"
"Found 'em in some dude's yard."
"Nice."
"Thanks."
Image from www.nar.org.au
The film's directors are a husband and wife team, Sean Fine and his wife Andrea Nix Fine, and they were recently blessed with the birth of their first child. But instead of letting their newest addition deter them from this undertaking, Sean continued on to the refugee camp and stayed for the duration of filming; communicating daily with Andrea, who remained at home in the U.S. while providing him ideas and suggestions from afar.One of the most profound approaches the Andrea suggested was to have the children look directly into the camera as they spoke about the atrocities they had endured. Earlier attempts to simply interview them failed. These children are similar to other war survivors in that they seldom speak amongst themselves about the evils they’ve witnessed and experienced. However, by speaking directly to the camera the children felt like they were telling the world about their ordeal, and the childrens’ memories’ floodgates opened.
Another of Andrea’s ideas was to focus on existing beauty. That beauty could be seen in the natural surroundings of a gorgeous part of the world which has suffered terribly due to internal conflict. Because of this conflict, often the natural beauty of the country is overlooked. Equally poignant is the beauty of the youth who make up the story, and how they are captured on film as they’re “making the journey to a peaceful place”, as Sean puts it.The one ingredient of this film which captured my interest immediately after I first read about it, was the importance and impact that music holds in the movie. Many of these children had never played an instrument of any kind before, but that did not deter their enthusiasm for learning in the slightest way, shape, or form. Throughout the documentary, music is the one constant that offers hope for the future and gives the participants an opportunity, they would have never have been previously allowed, to share their experiences under war conditions they’ve had to endure the majority of their young lives.The film is the work of a non-profit production company, Shine Global, which is donating seventy per cent of the project’s profits to various Ugandan agencies which help these kids in a number of ways, including nutritional and scholarship programs for the children. There has also been an outpouring of generosity from other charitable groups after learning of War/Dance’s efforts, which has resulted in bikes and musical instruments going to Patonga, where the Fines are headed in February to debut this film to the children it stars.War/Dance has been nominated for an Oscar, and is currently available in limited release throughout the United States, with foreign markets hopefully to follow as this is one film I am anxiously awaiting. Many people will want to see this film because it is a truly uplifting presentation; done exceptionally well judging by the acclaim it has already received.The Fines have made a impressive name for themselves in the making of War/Dance, and have been offered the next task of producing and directing a feature documentary on the effects of addiction in the U.S., in collaboration with Joseph Califano Jr. of Columbia University. I don’t know if they can succeed in turning this story into a ‘feel-good’ film, but it will serve as a relevant and important piece to many people and to society in general. I’m not a big watcher of awards shows, but I will definitely be rooting for Sean and Andrea on Oscar night. I hope that they achieve further and future success with their talents and abilities, which they apply in a very positive and uplifting way. As a result of Sean and Andrea’s efforts, this world is becoming a better place in the process; a noble and commendable ideal that we’d all like to ascribe to.
Rush has always been one of those bands that you either love or hate. But enough people love them to the extent that they are the top selling rock band to come out of Canada, with over 40 million albums sold. Their career is still going strong after 34 years, with no sign of it disappearing anytime soon, and includes a handful of albums that are hard rock classics and which showcase the individual musicianship of the three members that put them in a league of their own.3.) Bryan Adams
I was surprised in doing the research for this article just how successful Mr. Adams actually was, as he is currently second on the list of top selling Canadian acts, with only Celine Dion placing above his impressive tally of 75 million sales. But when you consider how many hit singles the guy has had throughout the years, it definitely makes sense as he had a great run of hits through the ‘80s and ‘90s, including his biggest hit Everything I Do (I Do It For You). A class act all the way, and he still maintains his nice guy personality regardless of his accomplishments 4.)Tragically Hip
The Hip is unique in Canadian music as they are undeniably one of our top rock acts, yet they have never realized any substantial international acclaim. And in some respects, that makes them even sweeter to a great number of their homegrown fan base because they still seem like they’re the same guys they were twenty years ago when they were just starting out. They have the distinction of being the top selling Canadian artist for sales in Canada, with over 25 million albums sold domestically, and they’re still going strong as they continue to release new material and remain one of the top concert draws in the country.5.) The Guess Who
This band is definitely one of the trailblazers for the Canadian music industry as they were the first band out of the Great White North to have a number one hit in the U.S. with American Woman in 1970, and had an impressive number of top hits within their ten year run including six top ten songs. They single-handedly proved to the world that this country possessed world class talent that could compete with the successful international acts of the day from Britain and the U.S., and by doing so opened the door for all the Canadian artists that would follow in their footsteps. 6.) Shania Twain
Although Shania started off as a country act, she had undeniably crossed over into mainstream pop by the time her third album was released and started to chart impressively on the pop as well as country charts. Come On Over is the top selling album released by a female artist, and is the ninth best selling album of all time in the entire world. Twain is also one of the top selling Canadian artists of all time thanks to the success of three hugely received albums: The Woman In Me, Come On Over, and Up. Her producer/ collaborator/ husband, Robert “Mutt” Lange was already one of the most successful producers before he began to transform Shania, and their professional union would propel both of them to staggering heights that will probably never be duplicated again.7.) Bachman Turner Overdrive
Randy Bachman would strike gold twice in his musical career after BTO caught on big time in ’74 with the success of two hit singles. Takin’ Care of Business was a top ten hit that is famous for being fanatically loved by Elvis, and You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet became their first number 1 hit in the U.S. and in most other countries around the world.The band would chart three top ten albums in less than two years, and have a number of hits in Canada and internationally which would cement their status as one of the top Canadian bands ever.8.) Joni Mitchell
Definitely an artist whose influence spreads throughout the musical world and transcends all genres, Joni would be an inspiration to many young women (including Madonna) who dreamed of one day performing themselves. She had a string of eight hit albums from ’69 to ’76, which is pretty well unheard of in today’s era, in any genre. She still remains one of the most influential performers in history, and recently won a Grammy for Best Instrumental Pop Performance for the song One Week Last Summer from her latest Starbuck’s offering, Shine.9.) Gordon Lightfoot
Another performer who crosses musical genres successfully and has maintained a strong and loyal fan base, especially at home. Gord has written some of the most beautiful songs to ever have been recorded anytime/anywhere, and even had such notables as Bob Dylan refer to him as “Canada’s greatest natural resource.”
I was flirting with the idea of not including this band on the list, basically because of the abuse I suffer at the hands of musical “associates” who bristle at my affection for them. But again, in doing the research for this article, there was no way I couldn’t include them. They’ve already sold more records than the Hip, but in less time, and their latest album is still on a record breaking charting course nearly three years after its release. They’ve had three top five albums within a five year period, and a number of top singles to boot. They’ve also won a number of awards both at home and internationally, so their success is a real and substantial one that deserves recognition and support…especially from home where it is lacking a lot of the times.
No surprise here, and if there is then I would question your age and if you have ever sincerely listened to rock music. The Beatles' success was extraordinary to the extent that they influenced generations, even after they were long gone. Many books and even movies exist that tell the amazing Beatles story, so I won’t try to do it here. But I will suggest that if you want to read the real story, start with the Beatles Anthology, as it’s written by the surviving three together, so you’re guaranteed to get substance over sensationalism. Also, the movie Backbeat is my favourite rock movie of all time, and is worth viewing if you’re interested in this band’s humble beginnings.2.) Elvis
This was a tough one, but I have to go with influence here, and no single artist was as influential to rock music as this man. Sure, it can be argued that Chuck Berry WAS rock ‘n’ roll, and definitely more talented as a songwriter and musician. But the truth is that his success was not comparable to Presley’s, and that only the Beatles themselves would reach and surpass that level of total domination of the rock genre of the day. There is a very real reason that he is still referred to as the King of Rock, even many decades after his unfortunate passing.3.) Led Zeppelin
This band was never loved by the rock critics as they borrowed (stole?) heavily from the old blues cats, and committed the unforgivable sin of being prickish enough not to give them their due credit and cash. But Zeppelin was undeniably the most successful and influential hard rock act of all time. They are the only band that I would dare to even put on the same level as the Beatles, and all you have to do is look at their success from ’69 to ’71 when they released four classic albums that even crossed musical genres in many cases. And instead of losing a fan base, they just kept getting bigger and bigger until they too reached that level of success that separated them from the rest of the crop. I’ve always maintained that Jimmy Page is the most underrated and under-appreciated individual in the history of rock, as he excelled at every facet of performing, including his extraordinary songwriting and production skills, to playing guitar as well as any of his peers. About the only thing he couldn’t do was sing, but we’ll forgive him for that as he’d done enough already. And besides, who needs to sing when you’ve got a guy named Robert Plant in your band.4.) Chuck Berry
All you have to do is watch the film Hail! Hail! Rock n Roll to truly appreciate the influence of this gentleman on the rock genre. Berry influenced absolutely everybody including the Beatles, Stones, Zeppelin, AC/DC, George Thorogood, and I’m sure I could easily write another dozen names if I gave it a second or two of thought. And the reality is that this guy got screwed by the system because of his skin colour, and both his career and personal life suffered terribly because of it.And it’s sad because he was a consummate artist as he wrote and sang his own songs, played guitar like no one else, and even did that cool little duckwalk that he’s still known for. In a perfect world, he would have been known as the King of Rock instead of Presley, but the reality is that he was a victim of both the times he lived and his own anti-establishment anger and rebelliousness that ensured career suicide and even incarceration for doing what all the other rock stars of the day were doing. Yes friends, life is not fair, and Berry is living proof of that.5.) The Rolling Stones
This is another one of those acts that require no introduction or explanation, and are one of the rare bands that gave the Beatles a bit of competition in any real sense. They would come into their own during their glory years in the late sixties and early seventies after the other “lads” had self-destructed, producing a few all-time classic albums that propelled them to mythic proportions. Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers, and Exile On Main Street were recorded during a period of great personal instability but exceptional creative drive as the band was facing financial ruin, exile from England, and possible incarceration for Keith. I’ve always said that the Stones were a great singles band, and they’re written some of the greatest songs of all-time, ranging from Satisfaction to Midnight Rambler, and many quality tracks in between. They are also one of the most influential acts in the rock genre for both their musical and personal exploits that include everything Zeppelin, Aerosmith, and Guns N Roses did or ever thought about doing while on tour, but that the Stones did first. They were the true originals, with help from the Who in many respects, for mayhem on the road.6.) Neil Young
The man I consider our country’s greatest natural resource still maintains his relevance today and has undeniably joined the legions of rock royalty, usually reserved for those acts that have long passed. His staying power and diversity is amazing, and he possesses the exceptional talent of being able to write both incredible music AND lyrics that rival Dylan’s. A good friend of mine recently attended one of Neil’s Massey Hall shows in Toronto and said that Young is still one of the greatest artists he has ever had the pleasure to watch, and my bud Murray has seen EVERYBODY including Zeppelin, U2, and the Stones. As I’ve said many times before, Neil has made all Canadians proud, and continues to do so.7.) Pink Floyd
In my mind, Floyd was probably neck and neck with Zeppelin for different stretches in the ‘70s, and that’s saying a lot. The album Dark Side of the Moon was as big an accomplishment as any band has ever achieved, and it was followed by Wish You Were Here which is an amazing album itself. While Animals never garnered the commercial or critical success of the other two, it remains a perennial favourite of hard-core Floyd fans and was followed by The Wall, which still remains one of the biggest double albums in rock history. Another act that still possesses a huge following that transcends age and nationality, as the Floyd has always been big in many non-English speaking countries such as Italy, Greece, and Germany. 8.) Eric Clapton
This amazing talent has had the pleasure of playing with more music royalty than probably anyone else in existence, in no part because of his name as one of the greatest guitarists of all time. The list looks something like this: Beatles, Stones, Chuck Berry, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, the Band, Roger Waters, Phil Collins, Robbie Robertson, Stevie Ray Vaughan, B.B. King. I could go on a bit longer, but you get the idea. When you get to hang with this crowd, your reputation definitely precedes you, and Mr. Clapton deserves any reputation he’s achieved as one of the true greats. He has the distinction of being inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame three times in all, for his work with Cream, the Yardbirds, and his solo output.9.) Bob Dylan
I would not have a complete list if I did not include Robert Zimmerman. Although his commercial success doesn’t rival a lot of the others on this list, he would influence nearly all of them, especially the lads from Liverpool who changed their musical direction in ’65 because they were so blown away by Bob. The fact that he turned them onto smoking pot also had massive repercussions as that would also influence the albums Revolver and Sgt. Peppers... enormously.And let’s not lose sight of his work, as he was very successful in his own right in the early to mid-sixties, and has maintained an impressive worldwide following that is reserved for rock royalty of his stature. He is one of the finest lyricists who brought intelligence and introspection into the rock world, especially with the classics Blowin’ In The Wind and Like A Rolling Stone. Without Dylan, we might not have had a Hendrix, Springsteen, or U2, along with a whack of others that first decided to create ‘something’ because of his magic. He is as diverse a performer as one can possibly imagine, and has played with just about everybody you can think of in the world of music.10.) U2
This is the only post-sixties act that I would include in this exceptional list, but U2 is very much a product of that musical era as their musical influences included all of the preceding acts. This band out of Dublin accomplished something that normally we don’t see anymore, and that is to reach a level of success that has lasted decades instead of years, or months sometimes. They themselves would go on to influence “newer” bands such as Oasis or Coldplay, and have produced a catalogue that would be the envy of any rock act. The Joshua Tree and Achtung Baby specifically rate as two great works, and the band is still going strong as their tours and albums continue to sell impressively. Bono has reached a personal level of non-musical achievement with his humanitarian effort to combat global suffering in the third world, and that is something he can be justifiably proud of in this age of “bling”.
When we were down in California last year, the whole fuel-efficiency thing was definitely all the rage. Driven (pardon the pun) by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, California is trying to introduce as many hybrids and other forms of fuel-efficient and low-pollution vehicles as possible.Obviously pollution is a bad thing, and gas is getting more and more expensive all the time. Who wouldn't want to save money and protect the environment at the same time? But one segment of the economy who don't really need to pinch the pennies is really jumping on the bandwagon, too: celebrities.Not that long ago, Oscar nominees showed up to the awards ceremony in the biggest, most ostentatious vehicles possible. I guess showing up in the SS Destroy the Environment gave them a sense of power, or something. But today, the trend is definitely toward fuel efficient vehicles, both as an everyday vehicle and for splashy events such as the Oscars.Train travel, which has always been strong in Europe, is on the rise. New lines and more high speed trains are added every year. One hopes that this trend will soon cross over to this side of the Atlantic.
We just got two seasons of Ricky Gervais's latest effort, Extras, on DVD.I loved The Office. So droll. And, as usual, the British version is much better than the American remake. Although, I've got to admit, the American version is growing on me.But I digress: Extras is what we're on about here. And Extras it shall be.Extras is a very, very clever show - even better than The Office - about people who are - you guessed it - extras. Or 'background artists', as some of them prefer to be called.Ricky Gervais is an extra who considers himself a 'real actor' - he just does the extra work to pay the bills. He's got a script that he's written that's supposed to be circulating, but unfortunately for both his writing and acting careers, he's also saddled with the worst agent of all times (played by Stephen Merchant, his co-writer for both this show and The Office).There are guest appearances each episode from some big name stars: Kate Winslet, Robert De Niro, Ian McKellan, Orlando Bloom. Each of the actors who appears ends up playing themselves - and yet, in Gervais's usual twisted way, he presents them as (what I certainly hope are) polar opposites of their true selves.The second season sees our hero being a little more successful professionally, but even less successful on a personal level.This one is a definite 10/10.Omage from www.mckellen.com
One more notable pick - #9 - fellow Canadian Michael Buble
will her first post-Buffy event.Buffy the Vampire Slayer went off the air in 2003. It was a witty and engaging show, with great characterization. The finale was one of the best I've seen - so often the final show cheapens everything, or ends up being a huge let down. Not so with Buffy.And the fans are hungry for more. Hence the reunions, from which our star has been absent.But this year, on March 20 at the William S. Paley Television Festival at the Cinerama Dome; in Hollywood whole cast will once again come together. Writer Joss Whedon will appear with the show's casts members Gellar, Amber Benson, Nicholas Brendon, Emma Caulfield, Eliza Dushku, Seth Green (He's an all-star, now, but not too good to appear at this!), James Marsters (Spike - drool!) and Michelle Trachtenberg.The PaleyFest runs for two weeks, and will also feature panels from current shows Pushing Daisies, Gossip Girl, and Dancing With the Stars, to name but a few.
is a doctor who works in a harm reduction facility in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. He is a former columnist for the Vancouver Sun and the Globe and Mail. On February 12, he will be releasing his latest book, In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction, in which he talks about all kinds of addition, from heroin to workaholics. There is a free lecture at SFU's Surrey campus on February 21. Go to 
All Images from abc.com as well as oldschooltblog
Keys is a tremendous artist and really got the show off on the right foot. She was then presented with the award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance by none other than Prince himself (who won for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance in the non-televised portion of the ceremonies). She won this award for her song No One and I cannot understand how this was not also nominated for Record of the Year? Much later in the show, Keys returned to perform the song No One in one of the best performances of the night as she was joined by another one of my favorites, John Mayer, on guitar.
I feel that all of these Alicia Keys moments were really some of the best this show, which dragged on for over 3+ hours, had to offer.If Alicia Keys was the highlight, I have to say Amy Winehouse has to be the lowlight. She was not able to obtain a visa to attend the show, so she performed via satellite from London.
This performance was what you would expect from her and if you are a fan then you probably enjoyed it. I am just not a fan of Winehouse in any way, shape or form. I applaud her uniqueness, but just don't think her music is all that special. That's what it all comes down to, right? The lowlight was not necessarily this horrible performance, but the fact that Amy Winehouse took home Grammy's for Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Female Pop Performance. This was very disappointing to me. She also won Best New Artist which I can understand because the competition in this category was negligible. I just wish with such little quality music being produced that they would not waste recognition on the garbage that Amy Winehouse is putting out there.Her acceptance speech for Record of the Year, also via satellite, was even a lower lowlight with her fake look of surprise and then incoherent mumbling. I think you can all tell where I stand on this issue, so we will move on to some better things. As a pleasant surprise to the ‘80s fiend that I am, Morris Day and The Time performed their hit Jungle Love.This was pretty cool until Rihanna joined them to perform her mega hit Umbrella. 
She looked fantastic, but the song still does not do it for me. It was great to see The Time perform together again. One of the funny, but true, lines that I heard was What is the best thing about the 2008 Grammy Awards being over? You might never have to hear the song, Umbrella again. We can only hope.Carrie Underwood performed her country smash Before He Cheats. Again, I am not a fan of country music, but Ms. Underwood looked beautiful as always. She was nominated for Song of the Year (which she lost to Winehouse), but won the Best Country Song award.
Tom Hanks introduced a Beatles tribute which featured a performance from the show Love (which later won the award for Best Soundtrack) and the movie Across the Universe. The first was a strange interpretive dance from the Cirque du Soleil show that really was rather horrible to watch even though I am a huge Beatles fan. The second was a fantastic performance of Let it Be featuring a young boy by the name of Timothy Mitchum. In one of the other highlights of the evening, Fergie performed a song accompanied by John Legend 
on the piano. I have a link to this stunning performance 
New Soul started as a track on Naïm's self-titled sophomore release on the French label Tôt ou Tard. The song was released as a single in France in 2007 and, after significant radio support, it quickly rose to #1 on France's iTunes chart.The success of New Soul on France's iTunes chart caught the attention of the ad agency putting together the MacBook Air™ campaign. Since the commercial's debut in January, New Soul has risen to #1 on the U.S. iTunes Top Songs chart and #2 on Canada's iTunes Top Songs chart. The song has also led to an astounding number of album downloads in North America. Yael Naïm was born in Paris, France but spent a large part of her childhood in Ramat Hacharon, a small town not far from Tel Aviv, Israel. She spent ten years in a music conservatory studying classical piano in hopes of one day and by the age of 12 (thanks to the influence of the Beatles and Joni Mitchell) helped her determine her musical directionAfter playing a charity concert in 2000, Yael Naïm recorded of her debut album In A Man's Womb. In 2004, she joined multi-instrumentalist, David Donatien and they formed her present day ‘group’. Her latest album, self-titled Yael Naïm, was recorded in her Paris apartment and features 13 songs including New Soul, and an unpredictable cover of Britney Spears' Toxic. This album is due to be released in Canada on Tuesday, February 26, 2008.
Image from londonteenagepoetryslam.com There's nothing like spending a Wednesday night at your local hole-in-the-wall watering hole, exercising (exorcising?) the old beer gland and soaking up some dirty ass rock & roll. What a delightful midweek social activity. That is unless, out of fucking nowhere, your hole-in-the-wall watering hole is hosting a Spoken Word Poetry Slam. More specifically an 'open mic' Spoken Word Poetry Slam. There's a reason people hide diaries under beds people. And that reason is shame. Teenage girls know this, why don't you? I'm as open minded as the next guy. If you wanna yodel while wearing a tampon tophat and have cocaine for breakfast every morning, that's fine with me. But I have to draw the line at Spoken Word Poetry Slams. Especially SWPS's that happen at bars. Bars are for drinking and loud music. You ruined my bar. I'm sure you think you're 'expressing yourself' or 'making an artistic statement' or 'are a cool person completely in touch with reality' but the fact of the matter is that nobody, absolutely nobody, in the world, cares about poems about other people's feelings. Arts/entertainment wise, standing on a stage reading a poem about your laminated scrapbook of melancholy is the zenith of laziness. And anyone who claims they really 'got it' or 'were totally feeling it' are only doing so hoping that you'll maybe have sex with them later. Which is also a zenith of laziness, Albeit in a completely different field. Unless you're a famous author, a science professor, a really hot chick or Batman, there's a 99.98% chance that no one will give a fuck. "But they clapped afterwards." Only to relieve the awkward silence. And maybe pity. Some people are nice. Not me apparently. I’d rather watch a Mime Show. "But that mime wasn't expressing anything? He had no message, man." Yeah, but did you see when he was trapped in that box? "But he got out of the box?" I know! and did you see how windy it was up there? Maybe I'm being a bit of a philistine here. Maybe I shouldn't knock it until I’ve tried it. But if (IF) I ever attempted to walk through the Ring Of Fire that is spoken word, I'd at least have the sense to moxy it up a bit. An interesting story! Sunglasses! Throw a few jump kicks in there! Adjective solo! "Now you're just trying to be offensive." Yeah, well, you're a retard. Thank you and goodnight.
Recently I had compiled lists of my 
Although she has never made a pair of shoes (to the best of my knowledge), she has had more influence on shoes’ popularity than anyone else in recent memory. Although Manolo Blahnik and Christian Louboutin made the shoes, Sarah Jessica Parker's character, Carrie, in Sex and the City made them famous. These shoe designers were popular among stars before the show, but their shoes soon became part of the average woman’s vocabulary because of this show. 
David Evins - If there is a shoe hall of fame, David Evins has a whole wing of the hall to himself. Evins has been called the inventor of the pump. For that alone, he's got a guaranteed spot on my list.Terry de Havilland - Terry de Havilland makes some of the wildest, most impossible shoes ever seen. Some of these include impossibly tall platforms, and shoes that have tripped models on the runway. But despite this somewhat sadistic description, he's one of today’s most interesting designers. I had the luck to see him in a store several years ago, while visiting London, but I didn't have the courage to speak to him. I think I would have been less nervous about seeing the Queen! (After all, I've never lusted after any of Her Majesty's hats, but I'd kill for one pair of Terry de Havilland's shoes.)
Salvatore Ferragamo - Ferragamo is one of the best designers ever. One well known story about him is that he noticed that women would buy his shoes, but complain about how much they hurt. 
In order to make his shoe designs more comfortable, he actually studied anatomy. For all the women who have ever worn an uncomfortable pair of shoes, this is definitely an appreciated development. 
United Nude - United Nude is my own personal favourite shoe store. Their designs are unlike anything else available. The shoes were co-designed by an architect and shoemaker, and the designs have a very architectural nature. With shoes that appear to float in mid-air and some which wrap around themselves, United Nude offers unique shoes that will definitely influence the future of footwear. Of all the pairs of shoes in my closet, these are the most treasured. Sources for images:Sarah JP: viewimages.comdavid evins shoeworld.com/Terry DeHavilland shoewawa.comsalvator Ferragamo shuzsociety.comUnited Nude phutwear.co.uk/
